'Resistance Burning Skies' Lights Up PlayStation Vita

Below:

Next story in Tech and gadgets

After three chapters on the PlayStation 3 game console, the
"Resistance" series now brings its first-person action shooter to
the PlayStation Vita handheld with "Burning Skies."

The game continues the storyline of humanity’s fight against
aliens, while introducing a fresh new take that’s bound to
entertain fans, despite a few shortcomings.

You play Tom, a firefighter who becomes a soldier in an alternate
take on World War II battling the Chimera — an alien race that
thrives on converting humans into their kind. Your challenge is
to protect your family from their onslaught.

The campaign will take you a few hours to get through, and it
introduces some good action scenarios. You’ll pick up various
weapons, including the Bullseye, which can fire "homing rounds"
that lock onto a target. You’ll also use grenades and, in
up-close situations, a fire ax to take down Chimeran warriors.

Gameplay switches between the dual analogue sticks for movement
and the system's touch sensors for using weapons like grenades
and your fire ax. The controls work quite well when it comes to
picking the right weapon for the job, though at times it can be
tricky to use both in the heat of battle. Tapping the back touch
sensors to run is an odd choice, but you’ll get used to it.

Along with the standard one-player story mode, you can play with
friends in Deathmatch and Survival modes. Survival is the most
fun: teammates who die then turn into Chimera that hunt you down.

Though "Resistance" doesn’t look or sound as good as the PS3
releases, graphics have plenty of splendid moments, including
massive explosions and grisly Chimeran kills. The audio is
generally compelling, though sometimes your weapons don’t sound
as meaty as they should. Character voices are somewhat weak, too.

Despite some shortcomings, "Resistance: Burning Skies" makes a
solid debut for the series on the Vita, and it sets a precursor
for better shooters that are coming, including entries in the
"Call of Duty" and "Killzone series." Bring 'em
on! [ Hands-on
Preview: 'PlayStation All Stars Battle Royale' ]